Added fenders to protect sub-flooring in wheel wells

[CampNBrew2]

Edit: Post title should have read SUB-flooring.

Like many others, I was pretty disgusted to learn of Keystone using Darco as a fender liner under my foam core floor system, and the water damage which could result after traveling in the rain. Luckily our flooring is fine since we have not traveled in the rain since purchased. (Lucky I guess!)
I was looking around up there trying to see what a good option would be for sealing the Darco. Since I don’t seem to do anything the easy way, I eventually decided that regular fenders would be the best bet.
I have the widespread 42” OC axles, so I couldn’t find a tandem fender to fit.
There was a flooring support outrigger bracket on one side anyway, I decided to use these single axle fenders.
https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Fen...n/F008554.html

They were on sale for a great price at the time and they are very strong and light weight. Of course they were not as easy as I hoped they’d be to install but I figured out a fairly simple angle bracket and support rod system. I wanted something out of the way to easily get to my wet bolts, equalizer and shackles. I can still grease everything easily and it is a simple job to unbolt the fenders if needed for suspension work. Plus a fun welding project for my father and I.

[CampNBrew2]

I taped some thin paneling to the top of the fenders to allow clearance so it wouldn’t rub on the Darco, then set them in place to mock it up for measurements.

[CampNBrew2]

Fabricated the angle and rod brackets and welded them in place. (after disconnecting shore power and batteries)

[CampNBrew2]

Heavily coated the underside of the Darco and in all the nooks and crannies with automotive undercoating, then repainted everything black.

[CampNBrew2]

Everything bolted in place. I probably could have skipped the rod supports but everything is rock solid now.

[CampNBrew2]

I had to bend a little bit of the bottom aluminum side skirting to clear the fenders, but all in all they fit nicely and are still fairly hidden under the factory fender skirt. Hopefully it will help make this trailer last for years to come.

All cleaned up

[solv3nt]

Wait, what trailers does this impact?

[CampNBrew2]

A whole lot of different models, though unfortunately I don't have a list. Likely common for other manufacturers too.
Mine is a 2013 Ultra-light Premier with the foam core floor. The Darco gets perforated from road debris. Then when you drive through water, it sprays up and soaks right into the cardboard and luan plywood surrounding the foam. A terrible design.

[chuckster57]

Nice work!! Didn’t we have a thread recently about a new product that mounted to the backing plates to protect against blow out damage?

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by chuckster57

Nice work!! Didn’t we have a thread recently about a new product that mounted to the backing plates to protect against blow out damage?

I believe this was it;

https://rv-de-fender.com/#blowout

[CampNBrew2]

Thanks Gents,
I'm not sure if this will help or hurt in a blowout. I do know its very stout and those fenders are tough. I just wanted to keep the water off of my subfloor.
First tow with them this weekend and with the new TV. I am excited to see how it does.
One thing I was unsure of is how much gap to leave between the fender and tire. I know the suspension does not have much travel, but with the equalizer in play, one wheel can move significantly more than the other depending on terrain. I mounted the fenders about 1/2" below the original wheel well subfloor Darco just so they weren't rubbing.

[solv3nt]

How do I tell if this is a problem on my trailer? '22 Hideout 175BH.

[CampNBrew2]

@solv3nt
The easiest is to shine a light up above your tires to see what is protecting your subfloor. Since your trailer is a newer model, hopefully they have moved away from this silly design and put something more stout in there.
Let us know what you find as I am curious as well.

[solv3nt]

Originally Posted by CampNBrew2

@solv3nt
The easiest is to shine a light up above your tires to see what is protecting your subfloor. Since your trailer is a newer model, hopefully they have moved away from this silly design and put something more stout in there.
Let us know what you find as I am curious as well.

I'm not sure if this shows it or not, but it's my only picture right now.

[CampNBrew2]

It appears you do have a fender liner which is good news!

[Socaldave]

Not trying to hijack your thread but I recently went with what another member here had done and added .250" HDPE sheeting to all of the exposed Darco. Just keep in mind that the Darco is not glued to the sub floor so there is potential for the additional weight of the undercoating to make it sag at some point.

My first step was to measure each panel and costume cut each piece. I then cleaned each surface under the sub-floor to remove any dirt and then sealed every seam where the Darco meets the sub frame, outriggers and siding with black RTV. I then put a bead of RTV all along the outside perimeter of each panel and used sealed head self-tapping screws to attach the panels followed up with another sealing of where the HDPE meets the frame/outriggers/siding. it's sealed up real good now and hope in last as it was somewhat time consuming.

[Socaldave]

@CampNBrew2 good job on those fender liners!

[CampNBrew2]

Originally Posted by Socaldave

Not trying to hijack your thread but I recently went with what another member here had done and added .250" HDPE sheeting to all of the exposed Darco.

No worries, glad to see anyone else's ideas as well. Anything I came up with was time consuming. Many ways to skin these cats.
Nice work there also!

[CampNBrew2]

First tow with the new fenders (and finally the new TV!). Everything was great. Very happy with how the fenders came out.

Spent a week in a spot I have been going to since I was a kid.

[CampNBrew2]

Tahoe National Forest